Three rescued from steep Bells couloir

Three climbers were rescued by helicopter from a steep couloir between the Maroon Bells on Thursday night, according to a statement.

The group was in the Bell Cord Couloir, which separates the Bells’ 14,000-feet-plus North and South peaks, when one of the climbers fell and sustained non-life threatening injuries, according to the release from the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office. The couloir has an average pitch of 45 to 50 degrees.

The group was unsure of the terrain, unable to go up or down the mountain and were not prepared to spend the night out, according to the statement.

A Blackhawk helicopter from the Army National Guard in Gypsum along with volunteers from Mountain Rescue Aspen deployed and hoisted the three climbers into the helicopter.